Do creative ideas work better than logical marketing?

Using science to prove the value of creativity.

Seven years ago, while working for an ad agency, I presented a billboard campaign to my client, Russell Fisher. After reviewing the work, he sat back and asked me this question, one that would deeply impact my career for years: “What proof can you give me that these creative ideas are more effective for my business than just a straightforward message? And I’m talking real proof, not the usual marketing jargon.”

Russell’s question remains profound — and one the ad business has been battling over since the ’70s and the birth of creative advertising. Put in more simple terms, it comes down to: “Do creative ideas work better?”

To best answer this, join me, first, for a fascinating look at the mother of all hard drives — our brains.

Emotion Versus Logic

The age-old battle over creative advertising starts with a few basic elements — emotion and logic. Usually, we equate these with the two major hemispheres of our brain: the left, logical half and the right, creative half. The left helps us with denotation, or the literal meaning of things. And the right offers connotation, or the connection between things, such as understanding the punchline of a joke.